It's not really a secret

Mark was watching TV when a Victoria's Secret commercial aired. He leaned forward, very interested. He's 13, so I wasn't surprised he's interested in pretty girls--I was more surprised at how blatant he was about it (that's not Mark's cool-as-a-cucumber style).

"What is Victoria's Secret, anyway?" he asked. "What do they sell?"

I suppressed a giggle, and blessed his innocent little heart.

"Lingerie," I said.

He stared at me blankly.

"Pretty bras and underwear," I clarified.

And suddenly, he sat back, waaaaaay back, on the couch and looked away, embarrassed (and I blessed his prudish little heart).

"Why does it even matter?" he demanded. "Who needs dressy underwear? Nobody even SEES it!"

I bit my tongue again, and refrained from answering, "You wear it when someone WILL see it!" But I knew that would further embarrass Mark, so I went with another (still truthful) answer instead.

"Girls like dressy underwear," I explained. "Even if nobody else sees it. Girls like pretty things."

"But...nobody else sees it," Mark repeated.

"The girl sees it," I repeated. "It makes her happy. Like when you wear your soccer or football jerseys."

"But people see those," Mark reasoned.

"I know," I sighed. "It's a girl thing. We like pretty things, like flowers and scarves and lace. We like pretty things even if no one but us ever sees them."

He stared at me for a moment, then finally shook his head.

"I just don't get it," he said. "I don't get girls."

I smiled. "You never will," I said, patting him on the back. "We'll be a mystery your whole life, so get used to it."

Mark sighed, loudly, sadly, his shoulders sinking. He didn't like the sound of that, so I threw him one last bone.

"Don't worry, we don't understand you men, either," I said. "But it doesn't matter--we don't have to understand each other to get along. That's why you have guy friends!"

That made him feel better, a little, anyway. But he turned off the TV, grabbed a basketball, and went to shoot some hoops outside.

You know, where there aren't any models in flashy underwear, and life is easier to understand.